A Long Awaited Reunion
by Lauren Leos
Summary: Ever wonder what really happened to Gale after the rebellion? Read this story to hear what happened back in District Twelve during the games and how the story really ends, three years later.


The hovercraft touches down on the gravelly roads of District 2. Here is a place he's been before, but not a place he could ever call home. For the next few months, Gale works with the new government people stationed here to help mop up peacekeepers. It is the sort of hard work that is needed to transition the birth of a new country, but unfortunately spending his days here gives him time to think about the horrible things that he's done and that have happened to him in the last few months. How could Gale's life have taken such a turning point? Everything now is better for the people of Panem, but his personal life has done so much worse.

Gale's mind takes a turn to the person he thinks about daily: Katniss. Deep in his heart, he knows Peeta is the better man for her, but that doesn't make it ache any less. She was always the girl he loved. Other girls, they were just people. Never his. Gale knows Katniss thinks he had something going on with Madge. They did have a fling going on at one point, but he broke up with her when he realized he loved Katniss, six months before the games. That day in the Hob when Darius was teasing her about his kisses, something deep down in him stirred. That day, at midnight, when he met up with Madge behind the schoolhouse, he confessed to her.

_"You told me you loved me, Gale! You told me that after we both turned eighteen, we would get married and be together. We wouldn't have to keep our relationship a secret anymore."_

_"Madge, things have changed. We're not working anymore."_

_"Why? Because of _ _Katniss? You always said she was just a friend."_

_"It's not like that anymore, Madge. You just don't understand."_

He can still see her storming off into the night, furious. Gale knew that what he did was going to come back to him one day, but he didn't care. All he wanted was to spend time with Katniss. He thought that she might suspect his feelings for her, but he knew that a relationship was something she could not handle. Gale remembers that awkward moment between him and Madge when they were selling strawberries the day of the reaping. She was still a sweet and caring person for the daughter of the mayor, but his hatred of her hierarchal position in life was infuriating. Katniss deserved her life.

Gale remembers planning what he was going to say to Katniss when he confessed his love. The morning of the reaping, he got cold feet, so he planned a private walk in the woods that afternoon when they were off to confess. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned.

"Primrose Everdeen."

When Effie Trinket called out those two words, it changed his life almost as much as is changed Katniss. When you love somebody with such a passion, they become part of each other's life. Gale felt as if one of his siblings was being called. He's helped take care of Prim ever since the day he first met Katniss in the woods. His first instinct was to volunteer for her, too, if he could. All he could do is stand and watch in horror.

When he heard the love of his life yell, _"I volunteer as tribute,"_ he wanted to break down in tears. It was like he was losing his father all over again. With his last grip on sanity, Gale ran out of his section and grabbed Prim by the wrist.

He picked her up, saying, _"Come on, Catnip,"_ and brought her safely to Mrs. Everdeen. Gale remembers locking eyes with Katniss, hoping that she did not see the emotions on his face. While Katniss tried to take care of herself, she needed him right now to let her know it was okay.

After Katniss' train left for the Capitol, Gale broke down. He couldn't even imagine all those _people_ trying to turn Katniss into one of them. When he saw Peeta confess his love on TV, all Gale wanted to do was march right into the Capitol and sweep Katniss off her feet himself. Seeing her on TV was like seeing a ghost, a ghost of the girl he knew, dressed up in all these jewels that he knew she must have hated. But hearing her voice, she was saying things that she would normally say; Gale knew the girl he loved was still there. But the idea of her not coming back, that was unbearable. Katniss has a family that needs her. This is not the way a strong girl like her should die.

There was nothing harder for him than watching the games. He started sleeping over at the Everdeen's house. When he couldn't do that, he and Hazelle managed to get Mrs. Everdeen and Prim to stay with them for a few days at a time. Over the course of the games, the two families had become even closer than they had before. When Katniss and Peeta first kissed, Gale was in the town square. Whenever Katniss was on television, the people of the Seam would come to fetch him, offer him support. Prim and Rory were with him then, they saw the look on his face and brought him home. The district people were watching him with sad looks on their face. Gale and Katniss were well known around the district.

That night, he was staying alone at the Everdeen's small house with Buttercup. Gale remembers hearing a light knock on the door, and somehow wasn't surprised to find Madge on the doorstep.

_He remembers screaming at her, "Why would you come here, to this house?"_

_Taken aback, Madge replied, "I know Katniss. She's a survivor. She has no use for love. You think the Games will change her. She'll be the same when she gets back."_

_"Are you here to beg me to take you back?" said Gale with bitterness in his voice. He didn't need a romantic relationship with Katniss; he just needed her._

_"You're not the only one who cares about Katniss."_

From that point onward, Madge did everything she could to help. She was responsible for pooling together donations for Katniss and Peeta. He remembers cheering with her when they saw a food come to them in the arena. Eventually, Gale and Madge grew closer. He learning things about Madge he never knew. He realized that Madge wasn't trying to win him back, but that she was just a lonely soul who needed someone. Not much different than he was when he first met Katniss.

**Time was just too painful for Gale to remember.**

He never even got a chance to tell Katniss how Coin stole the bombs. He didn't want too, she was in pain, and he couldn't just come up to her and make excuses. Gale knew very well that she didn't blame him, but that she couldn't be with him because she could never separate him from that event. And then, like that, Gale's whole life was over.

After three years of near solitude, Gale's fallen into a daily routine here in Two. He rarely communicates with other people, or even notices them. So one day, he was surprised to find a knock on the door of the small house he's staying in. When Gale opened it, he almost fell over out of shock. Standing there, on his doorstep, was a familiar man with ice blue eyes and blonde hair.

" Peeta?" There was only one reason Gale didn't like him, and that was because he was so pure. Gale's fatal flaw was that when people he loved were threatened, he went too far trying to protect them. Peeta always managed to protect the ones he loved. Despite the fact that Peeta had won Katniss over, Gale generally liked the guy. He felt that they would have been friends. The thing that scared him most was that Peeta was totally normal and not in crazy muttation mode. Gale had been the one that found the records of Peeta's hijacking in the Capitol, which they used to reverse him, back to normal - mostly.

"I never got a change to thank you, Gale," Peeta started, "For what you did for me. I only just found out."

"It was the least I could do. I've done more harm than good for you guys," replied Gale.

"She knows it wasn't you, with the bombs." defended Peeta instantly, as was customary for him, "You know why she can't be with you."

"I just can't talk about this. Why are you here?"

"She still needs you. She needs you in a way nobody else can help her," admits Peeta, "You know Katniss; she doesn't know how to deal with emotional things like this. That's who she is. If she did, then she would have done something the instant she finished grieving for Prim."

"What do you want me to do, Peeta?" asked Gale.

"Come back to Twelve."

"I can't do that."

Why exactly he couldn't do that, Gale wasn't sure, but regardless he somehow ended up in a hovercraft with Peeta Mellark on his way back to a place he promised never to set foot again.

Gale and Peeta slowly made their way to Victor's Village. With a pit in his stomach, Gale slowly rapped on the door. He heard the handle turn, and the door opened to reveal a small girl, barely old enough to walk, with dark hair and bright blue eyes. Her hair was braided down her back.

Gale turned to look at Peeta with his head bowed to the ground. Gale suddenly had the urge to laugh. "I know you feel guilty, Peeta. Honestly, I'm really happy for you." And he was. Seeing this little girl, he felt his romantic love for Katniss leave him. Katniss had children. Katniss was a mother. It was a Katniss he had never imagined. Deep in his heart, he knew that the two of them could never have been. He was over her. Gale still loved her, in that way he always did. But now he had room in his heart to, if he ever found the energy or courage, go find another girl to settle down with.

"MOMMY!" screamed the girl, "Someone is here!"

Faintly, down the hall, he heard Katniss' voice say, "Let them in, Rose!"

Gale's stomach churned. Hearing Katniss' voice after so long was painful. He didn't want to remember their last conversation.

Peeta nudged him. "Go on. It'll be okay."

Gale was aware of how loud his footsteps were walking down the hallway. He reached the end. "Maybe you should go first," he said to Peeta. Peeta nodded.

Peeta poked his head around the inside of the doorway. "Katniss?" There was a mumble for a reply. "There's somebody here."

Gale took a deep breath and walked through the door.

The first thing he noticed was her expression. For a second, she looked happy and relaxed. Then she realized who she was looking at in the doorway, and all expression left her face.

The second thing he noticed was her swollen belly. Katniss was pregnant.

Her expression could not have been more shocked. She opened her mouth several times as if to say something, then closed it again. She simply stared at him in disbelief.

Finally, Gale tried to say something, "Katniss-"

"I forgive you!" she blurted. Then burst into tears.

With a nudge from Peeta, Gale walked over and started awkwardly patting Katniss on the back, trying not to get to close to her. Hysterically sobbing, she tried to explain how she didn't hate him, but realized that nobody could really understand what she was saying and just continued crying. Gale looked up and saw Peeta with a slight smirk on his face.

Katniss stood up, and Gale hugged her. She hugged him back. Both relaxing, the three of them went into the kitchen to talk.

All was well from that point on. That day, they simply got out the hardest part: their relationship and Prim. After crying on both of their parts, Gale left to give the family some time to recover. But Gale didn't leave. He went to visit his family.

They had visited him a few times over the years, but none of them were prepared for the shock of seeing Gale back in District Twelve. When Gale walked through the door of his childhood home, his father's house, Hazelle asked the question. "Did you go to see her?"

When Gale nodded yes, Hazelle burst into tears of joy.

Gale never left District Twelve. After a few long months, he was able to mend his relationship with Katniss. He bought his own little home in the district. With a newfound energy to improve his life, he went to the new mayor of twelve with a proposal for a program that teaches kids about the Hunger Games era. It caught on and became a nationwide organization, that educates people about what really happened and that tries to prevent another rebellion.

Gale became the godfather to the Mellark children. Eventually, he also settled down with a girl. But he never let his friendship with Katniss tear apart.


End file.
